Metallurgical process.



No. 829,575. PATENTED AUG. 28, 1900.

' 0. B. DAWSON.

METALLURGICAL PROCESS. Y

APPLIGATION FILED 00125. 1905.

Snow/tax To all whom it may concern:

, UNITED srArns OLIVERB. DAWSON, 0F CALDWELL.

NEW JERSEY.

METALLURGICAL 'PRocEss.

Be it known that I, OLIVER B. Dawson, a citizen of the United States, residing at Caldwell, in the county of Essex State of New Jersey, have invented new and useful Improvements Metallurgical Processes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention ducing mineral in ore tothe metal without the use of fluxand at a temperature below the temperature of fusion of said metal, the product of the act being metallic particles or masses of metallic particles called sponge, according to thedegree of mechanical division of the ore acted upon, excepting those metals which (like iron) form carbids when heated toincandescence. with carbon at such temperature attainable in gas-fired furnaces.

To practically and commercially carry out my process, the mineral-bearing ore to be reduced is charged into a fire-brick-lined rotary furnace similar to the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing, such apparatus being em raced in my pending a plication for patent, Serial No. 284,382,

e'd October25, 1905, in which the a vertical section of the entire machine and lower end and lower part of stack.

A shows in section the cavity or chamber of the fire-brick-lined steel shell B shows refactory fire-brick lining.

,C shows steel shell; D, acirculartrack; E

which-the circular track revolves; H, sprocket; I, sprocket-chain;

gear-wheel; K, wormshaft.

E, the wheels on J shows worm L shows telescopic tube of hopper; MM, lower end of same.

N shows charging tight ca of combustion end of furnaceyR, ie sleeve for gas-mixing chamber; S,

e fuel-gas-mixing chamber; T, ,con-

' e for fuel-gas and air. under pressure; U, t1g t -asbestos-lined cap for excluding oxygen; V, tight removable calp on fluegas-chamber end or the purpose 0 emitting ue-gases and to removab adjustab ical blow-pi mlca-covered cap.

Yshows recess for cap V; Z, dust-chamber in lower end of stack;

Having described ternally heated to the tem tion', ground sulfid ores Wil ized by erature of reducbe first d'esulfurthe continuous application of an oxintroduction of hoate Y Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed October 25, 1905. Serial No. 284,383.

relates to the process 'of re-.

prevent ingress of 'air 'or' oxygen; Vi", hollow steel observation-tube;

a furnace that can be in-- atented Aug. 28, 190 6.

the ore beingacted on. Metallic oxids will be pro need and are in this manner rendered more susceptible of 'reduction to the metallic state, combustion bein .now increased until we reach the critica tempera; ture, approximately l,400 Fahrenheit. The firing end of'the furnace is now withdrawing the blowpipe from the gasmixin chamber and a tight-fitting cap lined with 'broiis asbestos adjusted to the outer end of gas-mixing chamber and locked. .The flue-chamber end is closed by a similar'cap by .use of the hollow observation steel tube" extendin back through the outer wall of the lower end of stack. The-fu tated until the charging-door is directly beneath the ore-hopper. The charging-door being opened, a bag or charge of granular carbon, commonly called coal, is passed in and the door quickly closed. The furnaceis now rotated, and an intimate mixture ofthe metallic oxids and thecarbonaceous reduction agent is produced, and the act of immediate reduction occurs, the product being carbon dioxid and metal particles or lumps.

The thermochemistryof the process is as follows: in the: presence of incandescent-carbon, excludingoxy en, the mineral molecule will break up with the formation of carbon dioxid closedby rnace is. now ro- Given metallic oxids or carbonates and metal. The carbon dioxid still in the presvi orous reducing agent my process is appli- -door of furnace; Q, cab

le to the mineral-bearing ores whose-temperature ofdecomposition isnot above the tern erature of decompositionof carbon dioxi and is especially useful-for the reduction of the oxids, carbonates, and roasted sulfide of copper, silver, and gold ores of commerce. a I

I claim as my invention 1. The herein-described process of immediate reduction of ores of, metal which do not form 4 carbids, consisting in subjecting the incandescent ores, atja tern rature' below the fusion orvolatilizing p'omt',of the contained metal, to the reducing action of finelydivided carbon, and the nascent'carbon monoxid produced at the instant'of-reduction ofthe byroduct gas, carbon dioxid, in the absence 0 air and flux.

air-currents, all in directicontact with 2. The process ofimmediate reduction of I I ores of metals which do not combine with carbon to 'formcarbids at the temiiemture of gas-fired furnaces, and theretentio'n of the same in the metallic'state, consistingfinsub- 'ecting directly-heated ores at; a temperature elow the fusion or volatilizin. point ofthe contained metals, While excluding atmos phere oxygen, to the reducing acti on of finelydivided incandescent carbon, and the instantlyeproduced nascent carbon mo nox id, to the absenceof air and flux;

Ihtestimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

- OLIVER B. DAWSON. Witnesses:

STEPHEN J. LINDsLEY,

W. O DAWSON. 

